The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1887-05-07
Ghe 6arner.
The Question of Roads.

From the Westchester Tilldge Record.
The roads in Chester county could not
be much worse or further from deserving
the name of highways than during this
February. Travel at faster gait than
walk has been scarcely possible, while the
strain upon horses and upon vehicles has
been tremendous. Transit with heavy loads
has been entirely barred, as few farmers
have strong enough teams to have hauled
a ton very far. Let no one suppose that
this refers to roads in new country, for 1t
refers to one of the Oldest settled commu-
mites of Pennsylvania, which has spent
upon its roads for nearly hundred years
from one hundred to two hundred thousand
dollars year, and which will spend during
the coming summer the same amount and
for what is spent the same sum last year.
Never have the people complained SO much
as this year, and one supervisor told us that
in his township, unless something perma-
nent was done in the way of road making,
some of the roads would have to be aban-
doned during the winter time. The annual
losses to people living in the county, due
to bad roads, if they could be figured up,
would undoubtedly foot up to surprising ely
large sums, yet there is no improvement
in the methods of road making from year
to year, so far as permanency is concerned.
Townships have introduced road machines
which do the work of mending roads i'll
summer much better and more cheaply than
the old-fashioned shovel, but the roads SC
mended are Just as deep with mud and i'm
passible in winter Engineering skill has
made the Pennsylvania railroad the most
perfect in the world, while the common
roads in Pennsylvania are far inferior to
the roads made by the Romans two thousand
years ago, when wealthy people didn't have
the comforts now enjoyed by the poorest
people in Chester county.
Something should be done in the matter,
everybody admits now, but when spring
opens and supervisors should attempt some
permanent improvements, not many but a
beginning, there would be grand cry
against the increased tax, and the life Of
those officials would be a burden when they
went to collect the tax. There is one
township in the county where the super
yisors reduced the road tax last year, for
which they received the thanks of the com
munity, and several residents of that town
ship tell us that they have walked to the
railroad station several times during this
winter, because the roads were virtually so
impossible that they wouldn't risk riding.
If roads are only needed in summer time
all well and good, but suppose war In
Europe had suddenly sent up the price OF
wheat fifty cents busheI, the bad roads in
Chester county would have barred the
farmers from hauling their grain to the
railroad, except at cost that would have
eaten up all the profit, and-well, let every
one figure for himself what the loss would
be from bad roads.
Good roads are possible, as anyone who
has ever travelled in England can certify
and one needn't 90 that far to verify it.
Down in Lower Merton, Montgomery
county, Mr.. A. j. Cassett, formerly vice
president of the Pennsylvania Railroad,
offered his engineering skill to his neighbors
and they made him supervisor, the result
being that the roads are so vastly improved
that winter travel has few horrors over that
of summer. OF course the question of ex-
pense comes up, but if township sets apart
only small portion of the annual tax levy
for permanent improvements on the main
roads it will not require many years to make
those roads SO good that the annual expenses
of repairing them will be less than now
while the saving in actual expense and the
added comfort and convenience of those
who have to travel or haul will be largely
added to. In connection with this there
ought to be some way of reaching the rail-
road corporations, and compelling them to
bear their share Of the expense of the roads
leading to them.